RussG

I had this for many years and it's around 35 feet or more long, there's dried algae in the middle of the hose , my question is there a way to clean it out? I've tried running hot water thru but that didn't workout to good, any other ideas?

Beth1965

Can you stick a clean brush down the hose? extend the handle of the brush with, i don;t know, a broom handle or something of the like?
Beth

Lucy

I got a used python at a yard sale, the hose is pretty nasty.
I plan to soak it in bleach then od with dechlorinator. Maybe that will work for you?
The little hoses aren't expensive, don't know about the bigger ones. I wonder if just replacing it would be a better option.
Let us know how you make out

RussG

They sell clear hoses at Home Depot but I'm sure if it's coated with anything you wouldn't want in your tank? I got the 30ft.? because I have 2 tanks in the basement also and my main tank in my living room, which is about 15ft. away from my kitchen sink.
Lucy, let me know how the soaking in bleach works out.
Thanks.

aquarist48

Hello. I tried cleaning some tubing a while back I think it was 3/4" ID. Soaked it in bleach for a few days. It turned the green/black algae that had formed in the tube to white but it didn't remove it. I ended up trashing it. I didn't want to risk all the white stuff going into my tank.
Ken

Lucy

Thanks for the info Ken. Did you end up replacing the tube? If so, where did you get it? Any idea on the cost?

RussG

Does anyone know if the clear tubing Home Depot sells is safe for aquariums? They do carry various sizes, I'm sure there's a size that fits everything.
Thanks for letting us know about the bleach thing, I was considering it.

Lucy

I know the white residue Ken's talking about. I've bleached my regular gravel vacs and ended up having the white stuff.....it was easily removed with the force of the hose.
Of course a gravel vacs tubing is much shorter than the python or Lee's.

btate617

You can buy the tubing at Lowe's or Home Depot or a similiar place, get the clear tubing used for the drain on your A/C. All it is is plastic tubing. It should be around 10-20cents a foot.

Brian

xVitox

i agree with just replacing the tubing it is much easier i have a DIY python that i am upgrading at the moment and the gravel vac i use has that problem

RussG

I'm gonna check out the home depot this weekend and see what they have, I still need about 30ft., I have 2 tanks in the basement plus my main tank that's 15 ft away from my water supply.
Just curious, I've been using this with the black algae somewhere in the middle of the tubing, is this safe to use

J2theD

I bought a python and needed about 20 extra feet, so I went to Lowe's and got the 1/2 inch clear tubing, a connector, and hose clamp. It works just fine so far.

If you needed to clean the middle, but can't, I would reccommend maybe cutting the section out or open and cleaning it. If you can not clean it, just replace the tubing and use the connectors, or just get connectors/hose clamps if you can spare some length. Those pythons are much too expensive to just throw away imo.

Regal

I clean the hoses on my canister filter with a filter brush tied to a piece of string. I don't know if that would be feasible on a 35 foot hose though. I put a plant weight on one end of the string and then run water through it to feed the string through. When I pull the string through the tube the brush on the end cleans the hose.

TedsTank

30 feet huh?...get a small weight, some string (more than 30 feet) and drop it thru the tube. attach a small brush or pieces of wash cloth and pull it thru. Tie it good!!!...dont want the cleaner to get come loose and get stuck!!!

RussG

I was thinking about myself, I just haven't been able to do it yet(sciatica)
I'll run hot water thru it for awhile and than run a wire or string or fishing line with attached brush and hopefully it will be cleaned, my wife has craft wire that I'm sure I can get 30ft from.

Regal

Ted said that so much more clearly than I did lol. With wire you might be able to force it through the tube. I just used a piece of yarn. If you use string you will need a weight on one end to get it through. Even with the weight I have to run water through the tube to force the string through. If you soak it for a while first that might help.